1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to plasma display panels (PDPs). More particularly, the invention relates to PDPs having improved luminous efficiency and reduced driving voltage.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally, a plasma display panel (hereinafter referred to as “PDP”) is a display device that displays images with red (R), green (G), and blue (B) visible light that is generated by exciting phosphor with vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) rays radiated by plasma during gas discharge.
PDPs generally enable display devices having a relatively wide screen of, e.g., greater than 60 inches, and a relatively thin thickness of, e.g., less than 10 cm. PDPs generally have characteristics of excellent color representation and wide-viewing angles, i.e., no distortion resulting from a viewing angle, as a PDP is generally a self-emissive display element like a cathode ray tube (CRT).
PDPs are generally advantages with regard to production cost because PDPs have a relative simple fabrication method as compared to that of liquid crystal displays (LCDs). Due to such advantages, PDPs may be more suitable for industrial-use flat panel displays and televisions display for home use in the future.
A three-electrode surface-discharge type is one-type of structure that may be employed in a PDP. The three-electrode surface-discharge structure may include a front substrate and a rear substrate maintaining a space therebetween, display electrodes, i.e., scan and sustain electrodes, on the front substrate, and address electrodes on the rear substrate crossing the display electrodes. The front and rear substrates may be secured and a discharge gas may be filled into the space therebetween.
An address discharge may be generated by controlling a voltage difference between a scan electrode and a corresponding address electrode crossing the scan electrode, and a sustain discharge may be generated by controlling a voltage difference between the scan electrode and a corresponding sustain electrode facing the scan electrode. The address discharge generally determines whether a discharge will occur, and the sustain discharge generally determines a brightness of the respective pixel.
When the scan electrodes are disposed on the front substrate and the address electrodes are disposed on the rear substrate, due to a relatively long discharge distance between the scan electrodes and the respective address electrodes a relatively high amount of power may be consumed to generate an address discharge.
To decrease the power consumption of the address discharge, address electrodes, scan electrodes, and sustain electrodes may be formed on the front substrate such that a smaller distance may exist between corresponding ones of the scan and address electrodes. The scan and sustain electrodes may be configured to have an opposing discharge structure, and may be shared by a pair of adjacent discharge cells, respectively.
However, the opposing discharge structure may cause a discharge gap between the sustain electrodes and the scan electrodes to increase, thereby increasing a driving voltage of the PDP.
The above information disclosed in this Background section is provided only for the purpose of aiding and enhancing an understanding of a basis and background of the invention, and does not constitute, and is not to be interpreted as, an admission or statement as to what is or is not considered or constitutes prior art relative to the invention.